M1Active 520 USB is a studio monitoring system designed for professional studio use with an internal digital-audio interface. M1Active 520 USB is a pair of active, bi-amplified, two-way reference monitors that play from 20,000 Hz all the way down to 56 Hz to cover nearly all frequencies audible to human ears. You can take digital signal out of your computer via USB and input it to M1Active 520 USB thanks to their digital input. Priced attractively for any studio's budget, M1Active 520 USB perform with linearity, clarity, and neutrality typically reserved for monitors that cost much more.

Reference MonitoringAlesis has built M1Active 520USB around their popular five-inch polypropylene low-frequency driver for full, smooth response in the low end and a one-inch silk dome high-frequency driver for absolute clarity in the highs. A custom crossover avoids the crucial vocal midrange, ensuring that your mixes sound the way you recorded them. The low-resonance bass reflex cabinet features radiussed edges to reduce edge diffraction and a tuned port for bass extension. A bass boost switch offers low-frequency enhancement to further accommodate for room conditions requiring a little more output in the low end.

Professional Monitoring OptionsWhen you reach for the convenient front panel volume control, you can be confident that the power you need will be there with M1Active 520 USB's bi-amplified design delivering 25W to the tweeter and 50W to the woofer. Like the rest of the M1Active series, M1Active 520 USB are magnetically shielded, so there's never an issue of placement near computer screen, LCDs, or hard drives. The front-panel stereo 1/4" headphone output mutes the loudspeakers when connected. When you connect headphones, the main volume control automatically switches to controlling the headphone output. M1Active 520 USB feature a large, front-panel, bi-color indicator that indicates presence of signal in blue and clipping in red for instant feedback on system status.

Extensive I/OProfessional quality analog input jacks are located on the rear. Two balanced-1/4" inputs enable engineers to connect a stereo source or two mono sources. For convenient recordings, simply connect the stereo output of a mixer. You can create complete recordings with no additional audio interface. The speakers are interconnected using a standard XLR cable for secure, professional connection. For worldwide operation, M1Active 520 USB features a voltage-switchable power supply.

USB Digital Audio InterfaceIn addition to their capabilities as traditional monitor loudspeakers, M1Active 520 USB monitors contain a USB audio interface. Connected audio sources such as mic preamps and instruments can be recorded directly into your computer at 16-bit, 44.1 or 48 kHz. Simply plug the USB cable into your computer. No special drivers required. And when it's time to listen back to your mixes, that same USB cable sends 16-bit, 44.1 or 48 kHz, stereo audio from computer to your M1Active 520 USBs. No more complicated interfaces and messy cable tangles.

They include an XLR cord to connect the 2 speakers. In my opinion it's not quite long enough.Yes it is made heavy-duty and "Industrial-strength", but 4 feet...Read complete review

They include an XLR cord to connect the 2 speakers. In my opinion it's not quite long enough.Yes it is made heavy-duty and "Industrial-strength", but 4 feet long, and you lose some of thatbecause they're straight plugs, (never seen an angled-XLR) plugging into the backs of thespeakers, so you'll barely get 3 feet (1 meter approx.) between them.I'm using a longer cord that I had laying around.

But overall, I would tell anyone to buy them. Fantastic price to value ratio. (Bang for buck).Only 1 small thing. The inputs are 1/4" phone plug. That would be okay if they had RCAinputs as well. I had to buy adapters from female RCA to male 1/4 phone plug.

Sure they're cheap, about 2 dolla each. Also available right here, just type "adapters" in thesearch box.But the day your studio monitors arrive and you take them out of the box, you kind of want toplay with your toys right away and I think most of the gear which requires monitors has RCAstyle output jacks.Built like a tank. Stout and sturdy. Just heavy enough of construction that lets you knowthis is professional level equipment.

Well made, no flaws. They rival the higher priced. And in a career that spans from the 1970's to the 21st century,I learned recording engineering from the finest teachers who worked with big names andmajor labels, and I've worked in smaller studios in the 1980's, down to home studios.

I bought the non-usb model 520 because I wanted both speakers to have both xlr and trs inputs as well as the sparate EQ and gain adjustments. Placement is critical but there is a switch for corner placement and close wall proximity to avoid echo. These speakers are very clear and accurate. Big sound and great for a studio. My studio is small but I could see these speakers doing fine in a larger room.

I wish I received the latest model with the 50/25 amp, but the 30 watts/channel is sufficient for a big accurate sound. Best used for small studio or home recording. The limit is the 3 ft XLR cable, but it's easy enough to get a six ft replacement at any instruments store.

For the Behringer freak, those speakers aren't clean monitors. For the rest of us, monitors have no sound of their own. They are critical to allow you to mix your music to sound good in any forum. They aren't Rokit 5s, but they don't cost as much per pair either. Unless you buy the Rokits, these are the next best at the cost and nothing else will compare with them.

These are a good pair of studio monitors. I trusted ALESIS brand, and I wasn't disappointed . They produce a clean , flat sound and they are built for small rooms or garage studios.The USB conection option is good, but I preferred to use the conventional conector via the output of the computer. The only ''cons'' (and I don't think this deserves a less STAR), is that the XLR cable for conecting both speakers is too short (complaint already given by other buyers, as well). You will need to buy a larger XLR audio cable if you want to separate more than 3 feet your speakers (as I had to do ).On the other hand, I recommend this ALESIS monitors.

Outstanding speakers. They required a few hours of break-in but sounded so much better after that. Sound is very clear and I can listen to them for hours and not tire my ears. Swicth is the beck for extra bass comes in handy. I do like the master-slave configuration since I don't have to adjust 2 volumes. The digital-analog converter is also awesome since it saves from having one extra component to deal with.Cons: website rates it at 75W when it's actually 60W (still plenty loud) and the HF drivers seem very fragile. Sound quality is definitely not an issue. Just be careful and do not poke them.

This is my first pair of monitors for my home studio so I don't know much about them. But from right out the box these sound much better than I expected. I'm really satisfied with these. I'll be using these at home and at mobiles as booth monitors.